The Environmental Neuroscience Lab at the University of Chicago
is interested in how the physical environment affects the brain and behavior. Previous findings from the ENL show that brief interactions with natural environments (such as walks in a park) can improve memory and attention by 20%. Studies in our lab have examined how interacting with natural environments promotes these improvements, investigating brain networks that underlie the relationship between environment and behavior. We hope to further understand which features of the natural environment lead to improvements in memory and attention as well as identify other manipulations that increase brain efficiency. Our current research examines how physical and social characteristics of urban spaces –including social cohesion, physical disorder, heat, and greenspace– (1) affect interactions between individuals in different neighborhoods and (2) relate to crime. In pursuit of this question, we are using deep learning approaches to analyze large set of social networking, image, and video data from sources including Twitter, Reddit, Yelp, Google Street View, and Sage. With a better understanding and quantification of the relationships between the brain, behavior, and the environment, we hope our research will influence the design of physical spaces in ways that will optimize human mental health, physical health, and overall well-being.
![Lab_photo](https://voices.uchicago.edu/bermanlab/files/2017/01/Lab_photo.jpg)
NEWS
Association for Psychological Science (APS) featured ENL’s article and research on their “Teaching Current Directions” website.
One of the most recent published paper Understanding Nature and Its Cognitive Benefits (by Schertz, K. E. and Berman, M. G.) was picked as feature paper by Association for Psychological Science (APS) in their "Teaching Current Directions in Psychological Science"...
the University of Chicago News: “Fear of math can outweigh promise of higher rewards”
Postdoctoral scholar Kyoung Whan Choe published a new study, showing that individuals with math anxiety might make decisions to avoid math in the price of lower rewards. This study is reported by UChicago news "Fear of math can outweigh promise of higher rewards"....
The Times: “Forget the great outdoors: children prefer city life”
The Times, London reports on ENL research about children's environmental preferences: "Forget the great outdoors- children prefer city life". Download the article here (Weblink here, requires subscription)